AF Air FranceKLM

PARIS—Air France has decided to enforce a cost-cutting plan for its pilots that was originally announced in 2012 but delayed by opposition from unions.

The French arm of airline group Air France-KLM will impose a series of specific measures on its pilots that will result in lower pay per hour spent flying, the company's human resources chief Gilles Gateau said Tuesday.

A deadline set by the company for the pilots to accept an alternative plan that would have resulted in lower paid flight hours but in more flights had expired Monday without a positive answer from pilots, Mr. Gateau said.

The decision made by Air France's management comes after several months of talks with pilots to find ways to cut costs while avoiding an outright clash like the two-week strike that cost the company almost €425 million ($489 million) in 2014.

For the past four years, departing Chief Executive Officer Alexandre de Juniac, has struggled to make his airline more competitive to stand against increasingly aggressive budget airlines and Gulf carriers, which have more-efficient cost structures than legacy airlines such as Air France-KLM.

Emmanuel Mistrali, spokesman for the largest union of Air France pilots, wasn't immediately available for comment. Mr. Mistrali has previously said union leaders hadn't rule out a strike if talks didn't succeed.

Other employee categories such as ground staff and flight attendants accepted cost-cutting measures in 2012.

Write to Inti Landauro at inti.landauro@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 03, 2016 16:05 ET (20:05 GMT)

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